Punchbowl NSW 2196
Punchbowl sits 24 km from Sydney CBD in New South Wales, around 31 minutes by car. Census data records 21,384 residents with a median age of 33 and a median household income of $72,228 per year. On socioeconomic measures it sits in the bottom 20% nationally. Population grew 5.7% from 2016 to 2021. The 2021 Census recorded a median rent of $380 per week and a median monthly mortgage of $2,050. The area shows high bushfire risk. Of 4 schools within the suburb boundary, 1 ranks above the state average, and walkability is high.
Is Punchbowl a good suburb?
Punchbowl scores a C (40/100) on SuburbScan's Liveability grade — strong on transit, weaker on prices, safety, and community.
Mixed results
4 schools · 1 above peer schools
Very walkable
Walkability 84/100 · 24.1 km · 31 min drive to Sydney
Above the state median
Median $1.44M · Less affordable than 83% of NSW
High bushfire risk
Fire 74/100
Highly disadvantaged
SEIFA decile 2/10 · median age 33 · 21,384 residents
Liveability Rating
40 / 100 · Ranked #1006 in NSWEach bar is Punchbowl's rank among NSW suburbs, from 0 to 100 (higher is better).
No flood data is published for New South Wales — a blank here means we hold no data, not that there is no risk.
How do you rate the liveability in Punchbowl?
Local knowledge beats any dataset. Rate it and see what other residents think.
Our score
40 / 100
From schools, safety and socio-economic data — not opinion.
Residents say
…
Median House Price
Public listings dataPunchbowl's house market is moving higher: the median sale price reached $1.44 million, about 4% above where it sat a year earlier.
Houses
$1,440,000
10% below its 8 neighbours (median $1,600,000)
Based on 153 recorded sales in the last 24 months.
Typically sold in 25 days — median across 96 sales that recorded a listing period
By bedrooms
- 2 bed 11 sales $1.37M
- 3 bed 65 sales $1.36M
- 4 bed 48 sales $1.42M
- 5 bed 20 sales $1.73M
Units
$532,000
10% below its 7 neighbours (median $590,000)
Based on 95 recorded sales in the last 24 months.
Typically sold in 24 days — median across 45 sales that recorded a listing period
By bedrooms
- 1 bed 11 sales $420K
- 2 bed 70 sales $534K
- 3 bed 13 sales $650K
Currently for Sale
Last 6 monthsHouses in Punchbowl are currently listed at around $1.25 million on average. Based on 13 houses listed in the past six months.
Houses
$1.25M
13 houses listed in the last 6 months.
Units
$561K
18 units listed in the last 6 months.
31 of the suburb's 6,043 dwellings (0.5%) were listed for sale in the last 6 months.
Rental Market
Advertised rents · last 6 monthsHouses in Punchbowl rent for around $880 a week on average, based on 77 houses listed for rent in the past six months.
Houses
$880/wk
16% below its 7 neighbours (median $1,050/wk)
77 houses advertised for rent in the last 6 months.
Units
$560/wk
10% below its 6 neighbours (median $620/wk)
44 units advertised for rent in the last 6 months.
121 rentals advertised against an estimated 2,447 rented homes (4.9%) in the last 6 months.
Rent agreed on new leases
Jul–Sep 2026- 3-bed houses
- $850/wk
- 33 bonds
- +47% since 2021
- 2-bed units
- $570/wk
- 76 bonds
- +73% since 2021
Median weekly rent on bonds lodged for new tenancies across postcode 2196 (NSW publishes bonds by postcode, which can cover several suburbs). Change since 2021 compares the median of the first four quarters with the last four. Asking rents above come from advertised listings.
Rental affordability
June quarter 2025123 Acceptable · the average rental household in this region would pay about 24% of its income on the median rent in postcode 2196.
SGS Rental Affordability Index: a score of 100 means rent takes 30% of income, the usual housing-stress line; lower scores are less affordable. "Region" is the capital city or the rest of the state.
Gross rental yield
Indicative$880/week ($46,000 a year) on a $1.25 million median
$560/week ($29,000 a year) on a $561,000 median
Gross yield — before strata, rates, management, insurance and vacancy. Calculated from median advertised rents and median asking prices over the last 6 months. How we calculate.
Short-Stay Rentals
No active Airbnb listings (3 listed without a review in the past year).
Airbnb only, as at Jun 2026; other platforms are not included. Active means reviewed in the past 12 months. The share is against private dwellings at the 2021 Census.
Serious Road Crashes
2021–202554 crashes
where someone was killed or admitted to hospital
Where they happened
Crashes are counted where they happened, so a main road through the suburb carries people passing through; this is not a measure of risk to residents. Roads are listed with 3 or more serious crashes.
Council Flood Studies
Canterbury-Bankstown Council has published 9 flood studies on the NSW Flood Data Portal. The mapped flood areas are in those studies; SuburbScan does not hold them.
- Prospect Creek Sub-Catchment Flood Risk Management Study and Plan 2024
- Georges River Flood Study 2020 2020
- Floodplain Risk Management Study and Plan for Sub-Catchments of the Mid Georges River 2017
- Canterbury LGA Salt Pan Creek Catchment: Final Overland Flow Study 2016
- Canterbury LGA Cooks River Catchment: Final Overland Flow Study 2016
Schools
Four schools serve Punchbowl, and results are mixed — some outperforming peer-suburb schools, some below. St Jerome's Catholic Primary School leads the pack.
- • 2,373 students across 4 schools (avg 593)
- • Sectors: 2 Government, 1 Independent, 1 Catholic
- • ICSEA 923-1054, median 990 (around the national baseline of 1000)
- • Largest: St Charbel's College (1,198 students)
Primary
Secondary
Combined
Universities nearby
- 2.0 kmWestern Sydney University - Bankstown CityWestern Sydney University · 60 courses
- 6.2 kmStrathfield CampusAustralian Catholic University · 85 courses
3.5% of residents here are full-time university students aged 15–24.
Distance is measured to the suburb centre. A campus nearby does not by itself mean a student rental market — most suburbs within a few kilometres of one have a student share close to the national norm, and the figure above is what tells them apart.
Walkability
Punchbowl is very walkable on foot — at 84/100, most daily errands can be done on foot. Within the suburb there are 1 supermarket, 7 parks and 3 cafes to anchor that walking radius.
Public transport
Weekday and weekend service frequency across every stop inside Punchbowl.
- Peak (7-9am + 5-7pm)
- 369.2 arrivals/hr
- Off-peak weekday
- 241.2 arrivals/hr
- Saturday
- 189.2 arrivals/hr
- Median peak wait
- 0 min
- Span of service
- 23.8 hours
Scheduled service only, based on the 21 October 2026 timetable. Reliability (delays, cancellations) not measured.
NBN connectivity
The internet access technology available across NBN premises in Punchbowl.
- Full-fibre (FTTP) share
- 14%
- Premises covered
- 7,356
NBN Co fixed-line and fixed-wireless premises, as at 30 December 2025. Higher-quality technologies (full fibre) score above copper, wireless, and satellite. Actual speeds depend on your plan.
Amenities
Canterbury-Bankstown: council population
The three add up to the change above. These are council-wide figures from the ABS, not figures for this suburb alone — this suburb's own population is in the census section above.
Socio-economic profile
The ABS scores 49 small areas inside this suburb and averages them into the single decile above. They fall into 6 different deciles — a wide range, so parts of this suburb rank well above the average and parts well below it.
Punchbowl is home to about 21,400 residents, with a median age of 33, broadly in line with the national figure. Median household income runs at $72,000 a year, with unemployment at 10.6%.
2021 Census · change since 2016
Population
21,384
Median Age
33
Median Household Income
$72,228/yr
Census Median Rent
$380/wk
Census Median Mortgage
$2,050/mo
Avg Household Size
3.3
Median Personal Income
$26,208/yr
Unemployment Rate
10.6%
Unoccupied Dwellings
8.3%
Total Dwellings
6,043
Owner-Occupier Rate
59.5%
Houses
56.7%
Rental Stress
27.4%
Mortgage Stress
34.1%
Work From Home
29.6%
Dwelling Types
Property Ownership
380 rented from a state or territory housing authority and 86 from a community housing provider, as a share of the 2,356 rented dwellings above — not of all dwellings.
Demographics
- Born in Australia
- 45.0%
- English Spoken at Home
- 22.3%
- Employment Rate
- 38.1%
- Completed Year 12
- 45.1%
Occupations
Religion
Country of Birth (overseas)
Largest overseas birthplaces, as a share of all residents.
When They Arrived
Share of all residents by the year they arrived in Australia. Periods cover different numbers of years, so compare the shape rather than the bar widths.
1,593 residents (7.4%) arrived since 2016. Australia’s borders were closed to most arrivals from March 2020, so the last two years of that period are much smaller than the ones before them — nationally 260,799 people arrived in 2019 against 28,521 in 2021.
Where New Residents Came From
Where residents aged five and over lived five years before the 2021 Census, for those who lived somewhere else.
Top places newcomers came from, as a share of the 19,908 residents aged five and over. Areas are ABS statistical regions. Small counts are approximate: the ABS adjusts every figure slightly to protect privacy.
Languages Spoken at Home
Top languages other than English, as a share of all residents.
Age Distribution
Family & Household Composition
Commute to Work
14% of employed residents work in a capital's city centre (894 of 6,415).
City centre: the ABS area around each capital's CBD, such as Sydney Inner City or Perth City (which takes in Subiaco and Leederville). 2021 Census place of work.
Local Jobs
People who work in this suburb against employed people who live here, 2021 Census.
About 2,650 people work here; 6,415 employed residents live here.
Mostly a place people commute from: 0.4 jobs per working resident. At least 53% of employed residents must work outside the suburb.
Counts are by place of work and place of usual residence. The ABS counts jobs in zones; where a zone spans several places, its jobs are shared out by land use. The ABS also adjusts every figure slightly to protect privacy.
Education
Cars per Dwelling
Council Rates
Households face an average residential rates bill of $1,322 a year through Canterbury-Bankstown based on 2024 figures.
How this land is zoned
- Residential 81%
- Parks and recreation 5%
- Industrial 5%
- Infrastructure and transport 5%
- Commercial 3%
Zoning sets what may be built, not what is there today. A single address can sit in a different zone to the suburb around it — the property page shows the zone for one address.
Building Approvals: Canterbury-Bankstown
In the year to August 2026, 1,785 new dwellings were approved across Canterbury-Bankstown. That mix is 610 houses and 1,175 units. Approvals are up 50.2% on the same period a year earlier.
Aboriginal Land Council
Aboriginal land in this area is administered by the Metropolitan Local Aboriginal Land Council.
Local Aboriginal Land Councils are statutory bodies under the Aboriginal Land Rights Act 1983, responsible for land claims and land management for their members. Their boundaries are administrative and are not a statement of whose Country this is. NSW does not publish a register of Aboriginal parties by area — they are registered for each project.
Air Quality
MODERATEPM2.5 averaged 6.5 µg/m³ in 2025 — below Australia's NEPM annual standard (8 µg/m³), slightly above the stricter WHO guideline (5 µg/m³).
PM10 averaged 16.5 µg/m³ · NO₂ averaged 0.9 pphm. Days over the limit in 2025: PM10 1 · NO₂ 0 · ozone 0.
From the Lidcombe monitoring station, 5.3 km away.
Climate & Setting
from Bankstown Airport AWS, 6.4 kmHigh rainfall — hot summers, mild winters.
- Elevation
- 22 m
- above sea level, at the suburb centre
- Distance to the ocean
- 10.4 km
- Near high-voltage lines
- 8.4% of addresses
- 753 within 100 m of an overhead line of 110 kV or more
- Annual rainfall
- 909 mm
- 82 rainy days
- Summer max (Jan)
- 28.7°C
- 13 days ≥ 35°C
- Winter min (Jul)
- 6.4°C
- 0 frost days ≤ 0°C
Elevation is the ground at the suburb centre, from Geoscience Australia's National Digital Elevation Model. Approximate — it reads high in dense built-up areas. It is a measure of height above sea level and not an indicator of flood risk, which depends on height above nearby waterways.
Industrial Emissions Nearby
18 facilities within 5 km- 0.9 kmLaundry and Dry-Cleaning ServicesTop reported: Carbon monoxide · Oxides of Nitrogen · Particulate Matter ≤2.5 µm (PM2.5)
- 1.0 kmOther Ceramic Product ManufacturingTop reported: Oxides of Nitrogen · Carbon monoxide · Fluoride compounds
- 1.6 kmBasic Inorganic Chemical ManufacturingTop reported: Total Volatile Organic Compounds · Acetone · Cyclohexane
- 1.9 km
- 2.1 kmBasic Inorganic Chemical ManufacturingTop reported: Total Volatile Organic Compounds · Ethanol · Fluoride compounds
EV adoption
In postcode 2196, 114 of 21,771 registered light vehicles are battery-electric on 31 January 2025. A further 6.4% (1,403 vehicles) are hybrid or plug-in hybrid, taking the non-petrol, non-diesel share to 7.0%.
Rooftop solar
In postcode 2196, 2,350 rooftop-solar systems totalling 17.0 MW have been installed since 2001, against 10,856 dwellings recorded in the 2021 Census. 166 went up in the last year.
Counts every system certified since 2001, so a roof re-fitted with a newer system is counted twice, and small commercial systems are included alongside houses — useful for comparing postcodes, not an estimate of how many homes have working panels today.
2026 covers part of the year only, to 2026-07.
First Home Owner Grant
FY2026-27$10,000 for new homes priced up to $600,000.
Off-the-plan or contracted-build value cap is $750,000 (vs $600,000 for completed new homes). Stamp duty concessions are a separate scheme (First Home Buyers Assistance).
Mortgage repayments
9 mortgage brokers are registered in this suburb, 17 across postcode 2196.
Transfer duty at the owner-occupier rate, and it excludes first home buyer concessions — those can cut it substantially or remove it entirely. Excludes legal, inspection and lender fees. Check with Revenue NSW
The First Home Owner Grant applies to newly built homes only, so it isn't available on an established purchase. A first home buyer building or buying new under $600,000 may qualify for $10,000 — see what qualifies with Revenue NSW.
At $1,440,000 this is $840,000 above the $600,000 First Home Owner Grant cap. A first home buyer may qualify for $10,000 on a newly built home — check eligibility with Revenue NSW.
A deposit under 20% usually attracts Lenders Mortgage Insurance, which this doesn't include.
Principal and interest over 30 years, fixed rate. Excludes fees, offset, redraw and LMI. Default rate is the median comparison rate across 1788 advertised products as at 2026-10-26 — indicative only, and not an offer. Your rate depends on the lender, your deposit and your circumstances. Not financial advice.
Federal Electorate
Currently held by Tony Burke Australian Labor Party
| Year | Winner | 2PP ALP | 2PP LNP | Swing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Tony Burke | 72.9% | 27.1% | +7.7 |
| 2022 | Tony Burke | 65.1% | 34.9% | -1.6 |
| 2019 | Tony Burke | 63.5% | 36.5% | +4.1 |
Results are per division — federal electoral boundaries are redrawn periodically, so the history reflects this division's past, not necessarily the exact suburb's voters across time.
State Electorate
Currently held by Jihad Dib Labor
Next state election: 13 March 2027.
| Year | Winner | Won with |
|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Jihad Dib ALP | 70.3% |
| 2019 | Tania Mihailuk ALP | 63.8% |
| 2015 | Tania Mihailuk ALP | 64.0% |
Results are per district. Districts were last redrawn in 2021, so results from before then describe the district of that name, not necessarily this suburb's voters. Results: © State of New South Wales through the NSW Electoral Commission, CC BY 4.0, adapted.
Looking at a specific address in Punchbowl?
Every figure above is a suburb average, and an average smooths over the difference between a street of family homes and a block of flats. Look up one address and you get the census for the few hundred people around it, its own nearest schools and stops, and what the state has mapped for that block.
- The census for a few hundred neighbours, not all 21,384 residents
- Nearest and zoned schools, with the walk from that door
- Flood, bushfire and noise mapping, where the state publishes it
Free to look up. Subscribers see every section in full — $29/month.
Featured in
- #4 in Sydney suburbs where the most Arabic is spoken at home
- #4 in Where the Lebanese community lives in Sydney
- #8 in Sydney suburbs with the largest Muslim community
- #10 in Sydney suburbs where 2-bedroom unit rents rose most
- #10 in Sydney suburbs where the most Urdu is spoken at home
- #12 in Where the Pakistani community lives in Sydney
- #13 in Where the Bangladeshi community lives in Sydney
Checking the whole city?
Suburbs to avoid in Sydney There is no list of bad suburbs, but there are hazards the state measures and publishes — recorded crime, bushfire exposure, flood overlays and aircraft noise. Sydney suburbs ranked on them, with what the numbers do and don't mean.Nearby suburbs
Bankstown NSW 2200
Greenacre NSW 2190
Lakemba NSW 2195
Padstow NSW 2211
Riverwood NSW 2210
Roselands NSW 2196
Compare Punchbowl to another suburb
Side-by-side stats for any other NSW suburb — type a name and pick one.
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Common questions about Punchbowl
What natural hazards affect Punchbowl?
Punchbowl has a high recorded bushfire history (74/100, ranked against every Australian suburb with any fire history). These are suburb-wide figures; check the address, as flood and bushfire exposure change street by street.
Is Punchbowl a good place to live?
Punchbowl has a SuburbScan Liveability grade of C (40/100), ranked against other NSW suburbs on school quality (25%), safety (25%), SEIFA socio-economic advantage (25%), walkability (15%) and CBD access (10%). Whether it suits you depends on what you weigh — each of those is on this page.
What is the population of Punchbowl?
Punchbowl, NSW had a population of 21,384 at the 2021 Australian Bureau of Statistics census.
What is the postcode for Punchbowl, NSW?
The postcode for Punchbowl, NSW is 2196.
How far is Punchbowl from Sydney?
Punchbowl is 24 km from Sydney CBD by road, about 31 minutes by car in normal traffic. Distance is the most-direct driving route, not straight-line.
What is the median household income in Punchbowl?
At the 2021 ABS Census, median household income in Punchbowl was $72,228 a year. It is the most recent suburb-level income figure until 2026 Census results are released in 2027.
What is the median weekly rent in Punchbowl?
The median advertised rent in Punchbowl is $880 a week for houses (77 listings) and $560 a week for units (44 listings), from rental listings over the last six months.
What is the median age in Punchbowl?
The median age of residents in Punchbowl was 33 at the 2021 ABS Census.
Is Punchbowl at risk of bushfire?
Punchbowl has a high recorded bushfire history (74/100). The score comes from Geoscience Australia's historical bushfire boundaries, with planned burns excluded: the area of recorded fires touching the suburb relative to its size, ranked against every Australian suburb with any fire history. It records where fire has burned, not a bushfire-prone land designation, which your council's planning scheme sets.
How are the schools in Punchbowl?
There are 4 schools inside the Punchbowl boundary: 1 above and 3 below similar schools on NAPLAN, compared with same-state, same-type schools of similar socio-educational advantage (ICSEA).
Is Punchbowl walkable?
Punchbowl scores 84/100 on the SuburbScan Walkability Score, making it very walkable. The score is a weighted average of public transport, schools, parks, supermarkets, GPs, pharmacies, childcare, and hospitals within walking distance.
What is the air quality in Punchbowl?
The nearest government air-quality monitoring station to Punchbowl (Lidcombe) recorded a 2025 annual mean PM2.5 of 6.5 µg/m³ and PM10 of 16.5 µg/m³. That puts Punchbowl below the Australian NEPM annual standard of 8 µg/m³ but above the stricter WHO guideline of 5 µg/m³.
What is the weather like in Punchbowl?
At the nearest Bureau of Meteorology station to Punchbowl, Bankstown Airport AWS (6.4 km away), summer days average 28.7°C, winter nights 6.4°C, 909 mm of rain a year over 82 rainy days, and 13 days a year above 35°C over 2006-2026.
Is the First Home Owner Grant available in Punchbowl?
First-home buyers in NSW may be eligible for $10,000 towards new homes with a purchase price up to $600,000. The grant is administered by Revenue NSW; confirm current eligibility before signing a contract — state rules and amounts can change.
What council does Punchbowl belong to?
Punchbowl sits within the Canterbury-Bankstown local government area. Council rates, planning approvals, and waste collection fall under this LGA.
How much are council rates in Punchbowl?
The average residential rates bill through Canterbury-Bankstown is $1,322 a year (2024). Every suburb in this LGA shares the same schedule — individual bills vary with land value.
How much is being built near Punchbowl?
Across Canterbury-Bankstown, 1,785 new residential dwellings were approved in the year to August 2026 (source: ABS Building Approvals). That's up 50.2% on the same period a year earlier. These are LGA-level totals — every suburb in the council shares the same figure.
Which federal electorate is Punchbowl in?
Punchbowl sits within the federal Division of Watson, currently held by Tony Burke (Australian Labor Party).
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Data freshness
- Census · 2021
- Median sale prices · Oct 2026
- For-sale & rental market · Oct 2026
- Council rates · FY 2024–25
- Building approvals · Aug 2026
- Schools · 2025
- Public transport · Oct 2026
- NBN connectivity · Dec 2025
- Road crashes · 2021–2025
- Air quality · 2025
- Climate · 2006–2026
- Socio-economic (SEIFA) · 2021
- EV adoption · Jan 2025
- First Home Owner Grant · Sep 2026
- Federal electorate · 2025
- Short-stay rentals · Jun 2026
- State electorate · 2023
- Amenities · Sep 2026
- Health & emergency facilities · Sep 2026
- Industrial emissions (NPI) · 2024/2025
- Coastal erosion · 1988–2025
- Aircraft noise · 2024
Vintages show when each source's data is from. See all data sources.
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Information shown is provided as-is from Australian government and commercial data sources.
Always verify with the relevant authority before making property decisions.
See Data Sources and How We Calculate for details.